Key Takeaways
- 25 million Americans lack dental insurance
- Average US dental visit costs $294
- 65 million US adults visited dentist <1 year ago
- Untreated caries in primary teeth affect 530 million children worldwide
- In US, 52% of children aged 6-8 have caries experience
- Sealants reduce caries risk by 80% in molars
- In the United States, approximately 90% of adults aged 20-64 have had dental caries
- Globally, untreated caries in permanent teeth affects nearly 2.3 billion people
- About 26% of adults in the US have untreated tooth decay
- Oral cancer kills 177,000 people globally yearly
- 5-year survival rate for oral cancer is 66% in US
- Tobacco causes 75% of oral squamous cell carcinomas
- Gingivitis prevalence is 90% worldwide
- Periodontitis affects 47.2% of US adults over 30
- Advanced periodontitis occurs in 8.5-13.4% of US adults
Cost and access gaps leave millions skipping care, driving high untreated dental disease and lost productivity.
Access and Economics
Access and Economics Interpretation
Caries (Tooth Decay)
Caries (Tooth Decay) Interpretation
General Dental Health
General Dental Health Interpretation
Oral Cancer and Lesions
Oral Cancer and Lesions Interpretation
Periodontics (Gum Disease)
Periodontics (Gum Disease) Interpretation
How We Rate Confidence
Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.
Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.
AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree
Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.
AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree
All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.
AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
Stefan Wendt. (2026, February 13). Dental Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/dental-statistics
Stefan Wendt. "Dental Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/dental-statistics.
Stefan Wendt. 2026. "Dental Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/dental-statistics.
Sources & References
- Reference 1CDCcdc.gov
cdc.gov
- Reference 2WHOwho.int
who.int
- Reference 3SEERseer.cancer.gov
seer.cancer.gov
- Reference 4NCBIncbi.nlm.nih.gov
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Reference 5ADAada.org
ada.org
- Reference 6NCCDnccd.cdc.gov
nccd.cdc.gov
- Reference 7THELANCETthelancet.com
thelancet.com
- Reference 8MEDICALECONOMICSmedicaleconomics.com
medicaleconomics.com
- Reference 9KFFkff.org
kff.org
- Reference 10CANCERcancer.org
cancer.org
- Reference 11PERIOperio.org
perio.org
- Reference 12ORALCANCERFOUNDATIONoralcancerfoundation.org
oralcancerfoundation.org
- Reference 13SKINCANCERskincancer.org
skincancer.org
- Reference 14RURALHEALTHINFOruralhealthinfo.org
ruralhealthinfo.org
- Reference 15BHWbhw.hrsa.gov
bhw.hrsa.gov







